Alone we go faster, together we go further! (2/3)

Today with the digital transition, we see a lot of new businesses appearing, reshuffling existing value chains or creating totally new markets. We dare more, letting aside the freezing fear of failure, and we launch new products at an increasing pace. As a result, lots of companies are re-building technologies and tools that already exist somewhere else, losing time and money in the process, in a world where quick execution and first mover role play a key role in success.

In this second article, I’ll explain my vision on why we should set up more partnerships to better and faster innovate.

Work together as a team with common objectives

Building your product alone (with third-party technologies whenever relevant) allows you to be very quick. You will be able to have quite easily your first clients and to improve the product thanks to the first feedbacks you get from early adopters. It’s a good starting point but if you want to build a sustainable company, you need a product that matters for a long period of time. Otherwise one or two years later you will close the curtains as the users will no longer use your product.

So how do you build a sustainable product? With collaboration!

Work together as a team with common objectives

Working with other companies allows you to build bigger products that make sense in a more global ecosystem that your users will need for a long time.

A great illustrative example is the toolbox. It’s quicker and easier to sell your 100 first hammers as it’s cheaper and you’ll easily find people who need a hammer. But finding those customers who need a hammer and just a hammer will come with a significant cost, and people will only look at your product if they are really looking for it.

On the other hand, if you’re selling your hammer as part of an entire toolbox, it will probably take a bit longer to finalize setting up this toolbox and to sell your 100 first toolboxes as it’s significantly more expensive and bigger – but you will only need to find big clients (hardware stores, retails stores) that will buy them in a larger amount. They’ll then distribute every tool to final user as a package or tool by tool – and clients buying the whole package will benefit from a new hammer even if that wasn’t their primary purchase motivation.

Building partnerships allows you to come with an entire ecosystem, a global solution. The big players will be more interested and will take this solution more seriously: the fact that you’ve been able to team also shows that you’re a good partner. You will be able to talk with them and to have a bigger go to market path.

Alone we go faster, together we go further

To summarize, this quote is so relevant: “Alone we go faster, together we go further”. I would say that we should not be afraid to work with other companies to make a bigger product and to innovate together. An idea is worthless without the execution, the team, the clients… So don’t hesitate to talk with others, to use existing technologies or existing tools.

It is much more pleasant to work on the strategy, the business, the solution you come with to solve a problem than to build your emails system, your payment system, your hammers, your nails…